Vauxhall Monza concept car: Eyes-on with the car of the future

Vauxhall has unveiled its Monza concept car at the Frankfurt Motor Show. The vehicle features a huge LED backlit projection display across the entirety of its dashboard, as well as a clever eco-friendly natural gas and electric engine.

Traditionally concept cars have dictated the direction that a vehicle manufacturer has taken with design, but rarely do the cars themselves ever come to fruition. This is a shame, because the LED projection infotainment system in the Monza is stunning.

Running the length of the front of the car's passenger area, not only is the speedometer and sat nav digital, but the entire dash - which exists as one single screen.

Vauxhall sees it as the future of car infotainment, with the seamless 3D display featuring customisable graphics and driving information ranging from directions to speed and fuel levels.

It uses a set of 18 LED projectors to help shape the single display. Traditional LED screens would be very difficult to produce in order to follow the form of a car's dash, so instead Vauxhall turned to the relatively new projection technology for the concept.

The car's infotainment system is designed to streamline information offered to the driver, in order not to distract them too much. Controls can handled be either voice or via buttons on the wheel, further simplifying the process.

Smartphones can pair with the giant screen, and then the driver and passengers can swap information between them.

The pairing tech will run in three separate modes - 'Me', which will disconnect the smartphone and prioritize driving information, 'Us', which allows friends and family to control the system, and finally 'All', which opens the system up to everyone.

Vauxhall says that the Monza's design takes its cues from the shape of a greyhound. The back of the vehicle is raised up slightly, and its whole stance and presence is supposed to give the impression of speed.

Inside passengers sit low and get in and out of the vehicle via a pair of large 'gullwing' doors. Those in the front are of course treated to its huge display, which is the real talking point for the vehicle. Being a future concept, it's powered via a 3-cylinder 1.0 Sidi turbo alongside an electric motor.

The likelihood of that screen making its way into Vauxhall's cars anytime soon is fairly slim, but what we could see is LED screens appearing on a smaller scale. Major automotive manufacturers are now pushing for entirely digital driver displays in cars, so it's only a matter of time before that side of things expands.

Let's hope some of the design from the Monza trickles down into Vauxhall's future cars. Its looks certainly help right some wrongs of the past.